Heavy metals are one of the most infamous air pollutants. They do not deteriorate easily in nature and they tend to bioaccumulate in nature. Because of their significance in terms of potential damage to human and environmental wellbeing, the monitoring of heavy metal pollution and identifying risk-prone regions is of great importance. Bioindicators are the most important determinants of the change in the concentration of heavy metals in the atmosphere. While plants play the biggest and most important role in reducing pollution in all of its types, they are also the ideal bioindicators. However, some plant species are better equipped to detect heavy metal accumulation than others. This study aims to determine the usability potential of Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris) in monitoring traffic-based heavy metal concentrations. For this purpose, samples of Scotch pine individuals were collected from one of the busiest highways in Turkey (along the Ankara-Istanbul route) from refuges at roadsides and at distances of 3m, 10m, 30m, 50m, and 100m from the roadside. Some of the branches and needles of the samples were also subjected to washing processes and the changes of Ni, Cr and Zn concentrations were determined for these samples. The change of Ni, Cr and Zn concentrations depending on the distance to the road, washing conditions and organelle were evaluated separately. We determined that Scotch pine is a good biomonitor-especially for monitoring changes in Cr concentrations.

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Increasing population and industrialization have caused air pollution and air pollution in some cities has increased to such an extent that it has started to threaten human health and has become one of the most important agenda topics of our day. Many pollutants arise in cities due to exhaust gases, car wheels, vehicles and vehicle wear. Heavy metals are one of the most infamous pollutants, because they can remain in nature for a long time without degradation and the amount of heavy metal concentration in the environment is constantly increasing. Heavy metals also tend to bioaccumulate. Therefore, the determination of heavy metal concentration is of great importance in terms of identifying risk regions and risk levels. Determination of heavy metal concentrations in plants is important both for determining plants' ability to remove heavy metals from the air and thus to improve air quality, as well as for monitoring air quality. Bio-indicators are the most important indicators of the change in the concentration of heavy metal in the atmosphere. This study aims to determine the usability potential of Scotch Pine (Pinus sylvestris) in monitoring the traffic related heavy metal concentration. For this purpose, samples of Scotch Pine individuals were collected from one of the busiest highways of Turkey, at the route of Ankara-Istanbul, from refuges, at roadsides and at distances of 3 m, 10 m, 30 m, 50 m and 100 m from the roadside, some of the branch and needle samples were washed and the change of Cu, Pb and Cd concentrations on these samples was determined. As a result of the study, the change of the concentrations of these heavy metals depending on distance to the road, organelle and washing conditions all seem to indicate that the Scotch Pine is a good bio-monitor which could be used especially to monitor the change of Cd concentration.

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Forest roads are essential for transport in managed forests, yet road construction causes environmental disturbance, both in the surface area the road covers and in erosion and downslope deposition of road fill material. The factors affecting the deposition distance of eroded road fill are the slope gradient and the density of plant cover. Thus, it is important to take these factors into consideration during road planning to minimize their disturbance. The aim of this study was to use remote sensing and field surveying to predict the locations that would be affected by downslope deposition of eroding road fill and to compile the data into a geographic information system (GIS) database. The construction of 99,500 m of forest roads is proposed for the Kastamonu Regional Forest Directorate in Turkey. Using GeoEye satellite images and a digital elevation model (DEM) for the region, the location and extent of downslope deposition of road fill were determined for the roads as planned. It was found that if the proposed roads were constructed by excavators, the fill material would cover 910,621 m(2) and the affected surface area would be 1,302,740 m(2). Application of the method used here can minimize the adverse effects of forest roads.

One of the most critical problems throughout the world is air pollution, causing the death of millions of individuals annually, and it is reported that 90% of the global population breathes polluted air. Among the components of air pollution, the most harmful ones are the heavy metals, which can remain non-degraded in nature for a long time, bio-accumulate in living organisms, and be toxic or carcinogenic at low concentrations. Hence, monitoring and reducing heavy metal pollution in the air are high-priority research topics. Heavy metals can accumulate within various organs of plants grown in an environment with an increased level of heavy metal pollution. The metal analyses on these organs can provide insight into the heavy metal pollution in the air. In the present study, the concentrations of aluminum (Al), one of the most important heavy metals, were determined in the different organs of five plant species grown in regions with different traffic densities. Remarkable changes were observed in the Al concentrations in all the organs of species, which were examined here by organ and traffic density. The highest values were obtained from the organs of plants grown in no-traffic regions.

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Abstract. Fighting forest fires not only depends on the forest type, topography, and weather conditions, but is also closely related to the technical properties of fire-fighting equipment. Firefighting is an important part of fire management planning. However, because of the complex nature of forests, creating thematic layers to generate potential fire risk maps is difficult. The use of remote sensing data has become an efficient method for the discrete classification of potential fire risks. The study was located in the Central District of the Kastamonu Regional Forest Directorate, covering an area of 24,320 ha, 15,685 ha of which is forested. On the basis of stand age, crown closure, and tree species, the sizes and distributions of potential fire risk zones within the study area were determined using high-resolution GeoEye satellite imagery and geographical information system data. The status of pumper truck intervention in zones with high fire risk and the sufficiency of existing forest roads within an existing forest network were discussed based on combustible matter characteristics. Pumper truck intervention was 83% for high-risk zones, 79% for medium-risk zones, and 78% for low-risk zones. A pumper truck intervention area map along existing roads was also created. © The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Distribution or reproduction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI.